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Moth In Lilac

Japanese Girl Rockers That Will Melt Your Face Vol. 2

This post is also available in: 日本語 (Japanese)

After picking 8 Japanese Girl Rockers That Will Melt Your Face, we found ourselves flooded with your love for the ones that didn’t make it to our list.

We heard you! And we agree—there are definitely more Japanese girl rockers who will melt your face. This is volume 2. Keep the suggestions coming for volume 3!

Band-Maid

From their formation in 2013, Band-Maid has been selling out concerts from Ebisu (Tokyo) to Mexico. Or, rather, they have been selling out “services,” the term they use for their live shows. It’s a part of the band’s concept, in which the 5 girls dress up as maids while delivering hard rock to their audience of “sirs” and “madams.” In addition to their unique contrast between their appearance and sound, they also play their own instruments. From “Thrill,” a passionate, measured rock track, to the faster and just as intense “Dice” and “alone,” members Miku Kobato, Kanami Tōno, Akane Hirose, MISA, and Saiki Atsumi are serving us with the most biting ferocity possible!

Moth in Lilac

Just a look at some of the names of this group’s members, with Ayano Sjögren on vocals, Lisa 13 on guitar and vocals, Ogami You on guitar, NaluchaRos on bass, and M9N (pronounced Mokkyun) on drums, can set this group off as unique. This goth/heavy rock/nu-metal/metalcore band pairs their heavy music with gothic styling. Brace yourself for “M.i.L.” and “Words I’ve Never Said” to start. As you’re listening, a great way to introduce yourself to the band’s look is through a browse of member Lisa 13’s Instagram account. She’s a model and plays guitar even though she is missing her right hand, and her fans all agree, she looks amazing!

Maximum The Hormone

The band’s female drummer, Nao, co-founded this experimental heavy metal band with fellow member Daisuke-han in 1998. Together with guitarist Maximum the Ryo-kun (Nao’s brother) and bassist Ue-chan, Maximum The Hormone has been winning fans over with their innovation, range, and infectious personalities for decades. Watch Nao’s incredible performance and techno background vocals in “恋のスペルマ” (“Koi no Speruma,” or “Sperm of Love”), a feel-good metal track. Listen to the way Nao’s vocals in “これからの麺カタコッテリの話をしよう” (Korekara no men Katakotteri no Hanashi o Shiyou, or Let’s Talk About the Future of Noodle Katakotteri) brings moments of pop and lightheartedness to an otherwise heavy song, and how her drumming perfectly transitions through the style changes throughout the song. In the song, Nao sings to Ryo-kun about how he should eat junk food to go back to being fat. “Maximum the hormone II-Let’s talk about Noodle Catakotteri-” is a new CD published by Maximum The Hormone that comes with a comic book!

LOVEBITES

LOVEBITES is an all-girl metal band that was voted Best New Band at the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards in 2018. Asami, Miho, Haruna, Midori, and Miyako all had extensive experience in the music world before the group’s formation in 2017. It is no wonder how they have been hitting it off right from the start, with two great studio albums, Awakening from Abyss and Clockwork Immortality out already. These Japanese girl rockers are influenced by new wave British heavy metal. If this sounds appealing to you, check out the exciting “Rising” and the fresh-sounding “Shadowmaker.”

THE LET’S GO’s

This Tokyo girls group was formed in 2006 and currently consists of members Coco, Sakura, and Mariko Mariko. THE LET’S GO’s have toured all over Japan and the United States. In their live performances, such as for “What I Want,” the Japaese girl rockers can be seen putting their whole bodies into their music. Their effort shows in their song “LOVE MY SHOW” as well, a fun song brimming with energy. The music video makes you feel like a part of the band—it looks like a blast, reminding us of the joy of rock n’ roll!

Drop’s

5 member blues/rock group Drop’s was formed in 2009 while the members were still attending the same high school in Sapporo. They now have 4 studio albums and 5 mini albums for you to listen to. With a range of such uplifting songs as “毎日がラブソング” (Mainichi ga Love Song, or Everyday is a Love Song) and such grounded songs as “月光” (Gekko, or Moonlight), the theme song of the 2016 film “Lost Serenade,” what ties all of their music together is their clean sound and the deep, beautiful voice of Nakano Miho. Together with her members Araya Tomomi, Oda Mamiko, and Ishikawa Minako, Drop’s is winning fans all over the world. They have an upcoming tour, Drop’s 10th Anniversary ONE MAN TOUR 2019, and are releasing their newest album, “Tiny Ground,” on September 20th, so be sure to show them some love!

こけしDoll

こけしDoll, pronounced Kokeshi Doll, are named after the limbless Japanese wooden dolls that have been around for over a hundred years. But these girls are the complete opposite of lifeless, giving alternative rock the honor of the most brutally delivery conceivable, as well as a mash of some hardcore punk and prog. The most striking thing about the band is arguably their vocal performance. Naomi Okuyama, the group’s vocalist and guitarist, has a controlled, shrill voice with an amazing range. You have to hear it to believe it. Yuki Nakabachi’s bass and Satoe Oiwake’s drums are pure rock and roll and compliment every song perfectly. Be blown away by “殺生体内” (Sesshō Tainai, or Killing Body), “メスの一生” (Messu no Ishho, or Life of Female Animal), and “カリスマごっこ” (Karisuma Gokko, or Charisma Play).

Akai Ko-en

The band’s name, 赤い公園, pronounced “akai ko-en,” means “red park” in Japanese. Founded in 2010, Akai Ko-en currently consists of members Ishino Riko, Tsuno Maisai, Fujimoto Hikari, and Utagawa Naho. With the pop-rock group’s loss of keyboardist and vocalist Chiaki Sato as a member in 2017, the addition of Riko, a former Idol Renaissance idol, gives the group a fresh new sound. Check out the strangely catchy “Highway Cabriolet” and the sweet and quirky “消えない” (Kienai, or Can’t Disappear). To hear what the band used to sound like, check out “闇夜に提灯” (Yamiyo ni Chochin, or Lanterns in the Dark Night), as it is never too late to appreciate Chiaki’s vocals!

This post is also available in: 日本語 (Japanese)

Ayu Martin
zoe@trendandchaos.com

Ayu is a staff writer and editor for Trend & Chaos. She earned her Bachelor's degree in literature from The New School at age 20 and is now a graduate student in New York City working on her Masters in creative writing.  Follow her on Instagram.